Verizon to transform Boston’s technology infrastructure

By: Janet Brumfield

On the afternoon of April 12, Verizon and Mayor Martin J. Walsh of the City of Boston held a press conference to announce a new partnership to make Boston one of the most technologically advanced cities in the country by replacing its copper-based infrastructure with a state-of-the-art fiber-optic network platform across the city.

The new network will offer enormous bandwidth and speeds. Through an investment of more than $300 million from Verizon over six years, this change will support the ongoing efforts to spur innovation and economic opportunity for Boston-area based businesses as well as consumers.

Construction of the fiber-optic network will be completed by neighborhood to concentrate resources and provide an expedited timeline. Initially, the project will begin in Dorchester, West Roxbury and the Dudley Square neighborhood of Roxbury in 2016, followed by Hyde Park, Mattapan, and other areas of Roxbury and Jamaica Plain. The city has also agreed to provide an expedited permitting process to encourage this build.

A modern fiber-optic communications platform will make us a next-level city.

Boston Mayor Martin Walsh

“Boston is moving faster than our current infrastructure can support, and a modern fiber-optic communications platform will make us a next-level city,” Mayor Walsh said. “I thank Verizon for their investment in Boston and for partnering with the city to provide the foundation for future technology growth.”

Boston has long been a leader in innovative communications technology, dating back to 1877 with the first old-time telephone line from Boston to Somerville. In 2010, Verizon built one of the world’s first 4G LTE networks in Boston and, shortly after, opened its Waltham Innovation Center, which hosts Verizon’s development and testing of cutting-edge 5G wireless.

“The transformation for Boston will enable businesses to innovate today and in the future,” said Martin Burvill, senior vice president, Global Operations, Verizon Enterprise Solutions. “Together with the City of Boston, we are delivering the promise of the digital world to schools, medical facilities, businesses and entrepreneurs while helping to usher in the next generation of Internet-enabled capabilities.”

This partnership will also improve wireless services in Boston by enabling Verizon to attach wireless equipment to city street lights and utility poles, helping businesses get fast, reliable mobile service when away from their offices or on the go. In addition, Verizon’s high-speed Fios internet service will help expand connectivity for schools and other community institutions.

In addition to its other benefits, this partnership includes an innovative “Smart Cities” trial that will address traffic safety and congestion along the Massachusetts Avenue Vision Zero Priority Corridor. The city and Verizon will experiment with sensors and advanced traffic signal control technology to increase safety, measure bicycle traffic, improve public transit vehicle flow, and decrease congestion.